Reader Project: Five-Dollar Log Cabin Playhouse

pmcdermottNov 02

Champion “dumpster diver” Ted Shumaker spent just $4.86 building this playhouse for his granddaughter. The logs, tossed out by a local home center, were too warped and twisted to sell. But not too warped for Ted to use. All the other materials-plywood, shingles, even the roofing nails-came out of trash bins at a building site. The only thing Ted bought was a box of screws, which he used to screw the logs to a 2×4 framework from inside the cabin.

“One man’s junk is another man’s gift from the Great Provider.” — Ted Shumaker